ARTIC is an eco-friendly transport hub designed to meet LEED-Platinum certification. The overall project is estimated to cost $180 million.
The center will emerge as a major transport hub for offering Amtrak rail and regional Metrolink services. It will include local buses, airport shuttles, taxis and connections with Disney’s monorail system.
HOK presented designs inspired by different stations, one of them New York’s Grand Central station. It features a column free design providing clear space till the ceiling, which is 150 feet high.
An expandable EFTE membrane will form the shell of the building, which expands and contracts to control the natural light entering the area. Photovoltaic and hot water heating cells will further make the building energy efficient.
The project will integrate a high speed rail station, linking north and south California at a later stage. The construction of the rail center is expected to begin in 2010 and achieve completion in 2013.
